A number of installed systems have been devised for periodically cleaning chimney flues to remove deposits of partially burned combustion products generally known as creosote and to minimize the risk of hazardous chimney fires. For example, the Johnston U.S. Pat. No. 1,030,733 and the Hermann French Pat. No. 464,295 describe installations in which a weighted brush remains seated in the chimney. For cleaning, the weighted brush is wound to the top of the chimney and then permitted to fall by gravity under its own weight. A disadvantage of this arrangement is, of course, that the weights may not be sufficient to pull the brush down the chimney in the event of irregularities or projections in the flue or buildup of deposits.
Chain actuated systems are described in the Steiner U.S. Pat. No. 1,184,784 and the Rotondi U.S. Pat. No. 4,340,989. A difficulty with these systems is that the chain becomes clogged with creosote buildup and slips out of the sprockets. The Messenger U.S. Pat. No. 606,567 describes a chimney cleaning system which is temporarily installed at a fireplace for cleaning the flue and which is then removed. Such a system must be replaced and removed during each cleaning and cannot be left as a permanent installation. The Premro chimney cleaning apparatus described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,859,166 is vulnerable because the mechanism of the apparatus remains in the flue where it may become clogged with creosote.